Donald Pleasence (1919-1995)

biography

Born on October 5, 1919, in a Dickensian industrial town in England, actor Donald Pleasence longed to escape this dreary existence. In his youth, he worked as a railway station clerk but left that job to pursue a career as an actor. He joined a repertory company at the Playhouse on the Channel Island of Jersey, landing his first stage role at the age of 20. When World War II broke out, Pleasence joined the Royal Air Force and was shot down in 1944, at which time he was put in a German POW camp, where he staged plays for his fellow prisoners. Following the war, he returned to the stage in London and, later, Broadway. His film career didn't start until he was about 35 years old, in the drama The Beachcomber (1954; with Glynis Johns). He also did quite a bit of television work in the 1950s and 1960s, acting in such TV programs as Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, and The Fugitive.

Before becoming a horror hero, Donald Pleasence usually portrayed a villain, such as his role as Ernst Stavro Blofeld in You Only Live Twice (1967; with Sean Connery and Charles Gray)

While everyone remembers Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis in the Halloween series of films, during his 40-year career in films he made dozens of low-budget horror films, including Circus of Horrors (1960; with Anton Diffring and Yvonne Romain), The Freakmaker (1974; with Brad Harris and Julie Ege), and I Don't Want to Be Born (1975; with Joan Collins and Caroline Munro). Interestingly, he didn't appear in a horror film until 1960. In the 1950s, he acted primarily in British dramas and comedies. His career in films didn't really get off the ground until the late 1950s, but as the years went by, Pleasence became well known for his portrayals of villains. After starring in the horror films Halloween (1978; with Jamie Lee Curtis and P.J. Soles) and Dracula (1979; with Frank Langella), Pleasence immediately went from antagonist to protagonist for the remainder of his career.

the films of donald pleasence

1984 (1956)

From Columbia's version of George Orwell's 1984 with Edmond O'Brien

The Battle of the Sexes (1959)

With Constance Cummings in the British comedy The Battle of the Sexes

The Shakedown (1960)

From the British film noir thriller The Shakedown with Terence Morgan

Spare the Rod (1961)

From the drama Spare the Rod with Max Bygraves

Dr. Crippen (1963)

Pleasence portrays the title character in the British crime drama Dr. Crippen. Also pictured is Samantha Eggar

Fantastic Voyage (1966)

With Raquel Welch and Stephen Boyd in the 20th Century Fox science fiction adventure Fantastic Voyage

Eye of the Devil (1967)

From MGM's horror thriller Eye of the Devil with Deborah Kerr

You Only Live Twice (1967)

As James Bond's arch enemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld in the 007 thriller You Only Live Twice

The Madwoman of Chaillot (1969)

From the Warner Bros. comedy/drama The Madwoman of Chaillot

The Jerusalem File (1972)

As Major Samuels in the politically themed MGM drama The Jerusalem File

Raw Meat (1973)

With Norman Rossington in the horror flick Raw Meat, released by American International

Halloween II (1981)

Master of the Game (1984 CBS Miniseries)

Pleasence as Salomon Van der Merwe in Sidney Sheldon's Master of the Game

later years

From the time his film career began in the 1950s, Donald Pleasence never lacked for work. However, his starring role as Dr. Sam Loomis in the Halloween series breathed new life into his career, and thereafter he was frequently featured in horror films. Working until the end of his life, Pleasence had heart valve surgery performed in late 1994, and although he appeared to be recovering, he passed away rather suddenly on February 2, 1995, at his home in Saint Paul de Vence, in the south of France, at the age of 75. He was survived by his fourth wife, Linda, and his five daughters from his first three marriages. His oldest daughter, Angela Pleasence, has enjoyed an acting career spanning five decades. She starred with her father in the fun horror flick From Beyond the Grave (1973; with Diana Dors and Peter Cushing).

TELEVISION GUEST APPEARANCESScreen Two, episode Femme Fatale, originally aired February 7, 1993Lovejoy, episode The Prague Sun, originally aired December 27, 1992The Ray Bradbury Theater, episode Punishment Without Crime, originally aired April 16, 1988Hallmark Hall of Fame, episode The Corsican Brothers, originally aired February 2, 1985Play for Today, episode The Falklands Factor, originally aired April 26, 1983Hallmark Hall of Fame, episode Witness for the Prosecution, originally aired December 4, 1982Dick Turpin, episode Dick Turpin's Greatest Adventure: Part 4, originally aired June 6, 1981Hallmark Hall of Fame, episode All Quiet on the Western Front, originally aired November 14, 1979Mrs. Columbo, episode Murder Is a Parlor Game, originally aired March 1, 1979BBC2 Playhouse, episode The Mind Beyond: Meriel, the Ghost Girl, originally aired September 29, 1976Shades of Greene, episode The Root of All Evil, originally aired October 7, 1975Performance, episode The Captain of Kopenick, originally aired January 1, 1975BBC2 Playhouse, episode The Cafeteria, originally aired August 13, 1974BBC2 Playhouse, episode The Joke, originally aired August 6, 1974Columbo, episode Any Old Port in a Storm, originally aired October 17, 1973Great Mysteries, episode Captain Rogers, originally aired September 1, 1973Thirty-Minute Theatre, episode The Joke, originally aired August 9, 1973The Man Outside, episode A Glass of Snake Wine, originally aired July 7, 1972Hawaii Five-O, episode The Ninety-Second War: Part II, originally aired January 18, 1972Play for Today, episode Skin Deep, originally aired November 25, 1971The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes, episode The Horse of the Invisible, originally aired October 18 ,1971Play for Today, episode The Foxtrot, originally aired April 29, 1971Confession, episode The Fell Sergeant, originally aired August 21, 1970Thirty-Minute Theatre, episode The News Benders, originally aired January 10, 1968Armchair Theatre, episode Call Me Daddy, originally aired April 8, 1967Seven Deadly Sins, episode The Good & Faithful Servant, originally aired April 6, 1967Thirty-Minute Theatre, episode Taste, originally aired January 4, 1967The Wednesday Play, episode The Head Waiter, originally aired November 9, 1966ITV Play of the Week, episode The Move After Checkmate, originally aired May 2, 1966The Fugitive, episode With Strings Attached, originally aired March 15, 1966Armchair Mystery Theatre, episode Ambrose, originally aired September 26, 1965The Defenders, episode Fires of the Mind, originally aired February 18, 1965Espionage, episode The Liberators, originally aired March 11, 1964Armchair Theatre, episode The Bandstand, originally aired January 1, 1964The Outer Limits, episode The Man with the Power, originally aired October 7, 1963Twilight Zone, episode The Changing of the Guard, originally aired June 1, 1962Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, episode The Confession, originally aired April 11, 1961Danger Man, episode Find and Return, originally aired January 8, 1961Armchair Theatre, episode The Cupboard, originally aired December 11, 1960Danger Man, episode Position of Trust, originally aired October 23, 1960Interpol Calling, episode The Absent Assassin, originally aired June 5, 1960BBC Sunday-Night Play, episode Twentieth Century Theatre: The Assassin, originally aired May 29, 1960Rendezvous, episode The Dodo, originally aired May 18, 1960ITV Play of the Week, episode Double Indemnity, originally aired March 29, 1960The Four Just Men, episode The Survivor, originally aired January 21, 1960Armchair Theatre, episode Small Fish Are Sweet, originally aired November 8, 1959ITV Television Playhouse, episode The Silk Purse, originally aired September 11, 1959BBC Sunday-Night Theatre, episode The Millionairess, originally aired September 6, 1959Armchair Theatre, episode A House of His Own, originally aired July 26, 1959ITV Television Playhouse, episode Mr. Browne Comes Home, originally aired July 10, 1959William Tell, episode The Spider, originally aired June 1, 1959Armchair Theatre, episode The Greatest Man in the World, originally aired November 9, 1958ITV Television Playhouse, episode Fate and Mister Browne, originally aired August 8, 1958The Adventures of Robin Hood, episode Marian's Prize, originally aired June 16, 1958Armchair Theatre, episode No Flags for Geebang, originally aired June 8, 1958Armchair Theatre, episode Man in a Moon, originally aired November 17, 1957Assignment Foreign Legion, episode The Coward, originally aired February 22, 1957The Adventures of Robin Hood, episode Ambush, originally aired February 11, 1957The Adventures of Robin Hood, episode Isabella, originally aired November 19, 1956The Adventures of Robin Hood, episode A Village Wooing, originally aired October 1, 1956ITV Television Playhouse, episode Chance Meeting, originally aired September 27, 1956ITV Television Playhouse, episode Ever Since Paradise, originally aired August 9, 1956The Adventures of Robin Hood, episode The Prisoner, originally aired July 9, 1956ITV Play of the Week, episode One, originally aired April 16, 1956BBC Sunday-Night Theatre, episode The Moment of Truth, originally aired March 6, 1955BBC Sunday-Night Theatre, episode Nineteen Eighty-Four, originally aired December 12, 1954BBC Sunday-Night Theatre, episode Such Men Are Dangerous, originally aired February 28, 1954BBC Sunday-Night Theatre, episode Arrow to the Heart, originally aired July 20, 1952

donald pleasence now showing

Watch the trailer for Donald Pleasence's 1974 horror film The Mutations